


Comfort

by Band_obsessed



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-16 14:27:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19320028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Band_obsessed/pseuds/Band_obsessed
Summary: Geordi cursed himself aloud, side twinging in pain as he gasped in a shuddery breath, lungs burning and eyes stinging. He knew he shouldn't have wondered off, especially alone in an electrical storm.





	Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Long time no see! This is very different than my usual ships/fics, as this is my first Geordi/Data fic. But tbh, I've fallen down a complete rabbit hole so expect more to be posted soon! :)

Geordi cursed himself aloud, side twinging in pain as he gasped in a shuddery breath, lungs burning and eyes stinging. His visor had cut out after a particularly hard fall, and he’d lost it when he further tripped over, hands reaching out blindly to cushion his fall and palms being sliced open on particularly jagged rocks. With every step he took he could feel his ribs aching, surely broken if the amount of bruising he felt was anything to go by, and the dust kicked up by the wind from the planet’s atmosphere choked him as he called out brokenly. He knew he wasn’t alone. He knew Data was nearby somewhere, along with the rest of the away team, and they wouldn’t have left him, right? The uneven terrain made his blind navigation that much harder, and when his foot caught on a rock he found himself tumbling once again, only able to croak out a hoarse cry of shock as he fell. His ribs hurt and his head throbbed, throat burning from the dust and lack of water, and he found himself unable to pick himself up, instead lying on his back, sucking in what air he could manage as his ribs pressed into his lungs. He shouldn’t have wandered off, he knew he shouldn’t have, and now he was gonna die here, alone and in the dark. On a particularly large inhale, pain shot down his entire left-hand side and his head swam, ears ringing, and he thought he heard his own voice yell out with what little energy he had left before he blacked out.

* * *

The cracked visor had been the first clue, a knot of unease tying itself in Data’s stomach as he picked it up, squinting against the harsh weather. He analysed the damage, barking out an order for the rest of the away team to head back to the shuttle as he did so, before walking in the direction he had last seen Geordi going. He was aware that in this weather, any tracks left by the other man would be covered up in mere seconds, and he felt the beginnings of…worry for Geordi’s wellbeing surface.

“Geordi!” Data called out, his voice largely being drowned out by the howling wind as he stopped and listened to the surroundings, ears straining and over half of his positronic net tasked with detecting even the smallest of sounds. There. That was…something, a cry, a sound that Data couldn’t discern from this distance, wasn’t even sure if it was human. He took off in the direction of the sound, utilising his superhuman speed as he continued to traverse the terrain, images of a sightless Geordi attempting to do the same stirring up discomfort within him. Data skidded to a halt abruptly at the flash of yellow against the orange terrain and dropped to his knees beside a motionless Geordi. A quick check of his pulse reveals he is, in fact, alive, but a further check reveals his respiration is impaired.

“Geordi,” Data shouted, struggling to hear himself over the storm, bringing his arm behind his neck as he went to lift him up. A pained gasp tore its way from Geordi’s throat, and Data immediately stilled his ministrations. Geordi’s eyelids fluttered, lips parting on a hoarse garble of what Data assumed to be his name. “I am sorry, Geordi, but I must move you, we have to get back to the shuttle.” He waited, hoping for a coherent answer, but was rewarded with nothing more than a mumble and a hand grabbing at his uniform. With as much care as he could manage, Data picked up Geordi’s limp body, eyebrows twitching when Geordi cried out in pain, and instead of replaying every excruciating detail of the sound, Data instead tasked himself with calculating the maximum speed at which he could safely carry Geordi in his injured state. With a rough estimation of twenty miles per hour, he increased his pace to match his calculations and found himself, rather illogically, bargaining internally for Geordi’s life.

* * *

Consciousness returned to Geordi like the remnants of a distant dream, his ears ringing and skin burning. When the ringing tapered off into familiar beeping sounds that he vaguely recalled as the noise of consoles, he blinked open his eyes, waiting for the swirl of colours. When nothing but the void remained, he blindly reached up a hand to feel at his face, panic swelling in his gut when his visor was not resting over his eyes, and he fumbled around his surroundings attempting to locate it. A particular sideways movement left his ribs throbbing, and a strained whine joined his rapid breathing, pain and discomfort mixing in his chest.

“Geordi, you must lie still.” He reached out immediately, a choked, relieved gasp leaving his lips as he connected with what he assumed to be Data’s uniform. Tears tracked down his cheeks as he felt the familiar sensation of Data’s cool skin on his arm, the fear and pain leaving him drained, head falling back onto the bed.

“Data? What happened? Where the hell are we?” He asked, breathing causing his ribs to groan in protest, and Data encouraged him to lay still with a hand gently pressed against his sternum.

“We are in a shuttlecraft, returning to the Enterprise. You were injured on the planet while conducting research, and I have not been able to fully repair the damage you sustained with the limited resources aboard the shuttle.”

“And my visor?” Geordi asked, voice betraying just how scared he felt, taking some form of comfort in the hand on his chest.

“It has sustained heavy damage, I speculate that you will require a replacement when we arrive back on the Enterprise in approximately three hours, forty minutes and twenty-six seconds.” Great. His displeasure at the scenario must have registered on his face, as he felt a cool hand press against his cheek before it reached down and took hold of his hand instead, lacing their fingers together.

“Data?” Geordi croaked, squeezing the hand holding his for comfort, his other arm reaching up to blindly feel for Data’s face, fingers dancing over his skin, taking in his features sightlessly, lingering on the feel of his synthetic eyelashes and the warmth of his simulated breath.

“Forgive me, Geordi, I do not wish to make you uncomfortable,” Data started, lips brushing against Geordi’s fingers as he spoke, “but you appeared…distressed, and I believe humans hold each other’s hands for comfort, correct?” Despite the situation, Geordi found himself smiling, eyelids closing momentarily as he relished in the contact.

Geordi laughed breathlessly, ignoring the protests from his ribs as he clutched at Data's hand, “Yeah, Data, they do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading! My (Star Trek) Tumblr is here: https://hanjisans.tumblr.com/


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